Grammatical features of Pakistani English: A Corpus Analysis of Pakistani English Newspapers and Magazines

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Published: Sep 30, 2023
DOI: https://doi.org/10.53057/linfo/2023.5.3.8
Keywords:
Grammar, Pakistani English, Corpus Analysis, Written Corpus, Language Variety

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Wafa Mansoor Buriro
Lecturer, Department of English, Sindh Madressatul Islam University Karachi
Sajida Zaki
Department of Humanities, NED University of Engineering and Technology Karachi
Almas Ashraf
Department of Humanities, NED University of Engineering and Technology Karachi

Abstract

The paper presents a corpus analysis conducted on the written corpus of Pakistani English. The corpus, created by the authors, is derived from the most widely circulated English newspapers and magazines in Pakistan. The analysis employs Sketch Engine and utilizes two models, namely Galloway and Rose (2015) and Jenkins (2009), to identify the distinctive grammatical features of Pakistani English in the corpus. The selection criteria for examining grammatical features are also grounded in these two models. The study focuses on the analysis of specific grammatical aspects, including (i) the use of adverbs, (ii) the use of the definite article, (iii) plurality, (iv) the use of yes/no questions, and (v) reduplication. The findings reveal that Pakistani English exhibits variations in the placement of adverbs and the usage of the definite article 'the'. Plurality is a prevalent feature, with writers often treating uncountable nouns as countable in their compositions. However, the data does not indicate any deviations regarding two features: yes/no questions and reduplication. Despite being a less recognized variety of English, primarily due to the limited documentation of its features, this paper contributes to the establishment of Pakistani English as a recognized linguistic variety.

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How to Cite
Buriro, W. M., Zaki, S., & Ashraf, A. (2023). Grammatical features of Pakistani English: A Corpus Analysis of Pakistani English Newspapers and Magazines. Linguistic Forum - A Journal of Linguistics, 5(3), 89–113. https://doi.org/10.53057/linfo/2023.5.3.8
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Vol. 5 No. 3 (2023): Linguistic Forum - A Journal of Linguistics
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Articles
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Author Biographies

Wafa Mansoor Buriro, Lecturer, Department of English, Sindh Madressatul Islam University Karachi

Wafa Mansoor Buriro is an Assistant Professor and coordinator at Department of English, Sindh Madressatul Islam University Karachi, Sindh. He has done his MS in Applied Linguistics from NED University of Engineering and Technology, Karachi in 2019 with the highest score among his batch. Earlier, he had completed his BS in Applied Linguistics from University of Sindh, Jamshoro in 2013 with the distinction of first position along with silver medal. He has ten years of teaching experience at university level. Mr. Buriro has authored and/or co-authored 13 research papers which are published in various research journals of national and international level. He has translated three books. His research interest lies in sociolinguistics, language ecology, and lexico-morphology. Currently, he is working on his doctoral dissertation and an HEC-Pakistan funded NRPU project as a Co-PI. He is also the Managing Editor of Sindh Journal of Linguistics (SJL).

Sajida Zaki, Department of Humanities, NED University of Engineering and Technology Karachi

Prof. Dr. Sajida Zaki is currently working as Professor in English & Chairperson Department of Humanities, NED University of Engineering & Technology, Karachi. She has completed her Ph.D. in Social Sciences from Hamdard University, Pakistan. She also served as visiting staff member at Ruprecht Karls- Heidelberg University, Heidelberg Germany, Assistant Professor Institute of Business Administration (IBA), Associate Professor at Commecs Institute of Business Education, and Lecture at DHA Degree College. She has supervised multiple M.Phil/MSc students and PhD research scholars. She is member of National Committee on Examination Systems, National Committee on English- ELTR Project Phase 1-Higher Education Commission Islamabad, and External member on the Board of Studies of English Departments at SBK Women University, Quetta. She is Editor of Journal of Social Sciences & Interdisciplinary Research (NEDUET), member of editorial board of Research Journal JISR-MSSE (SZABIST), Baluchistan Journal of Linguistics (LUAWMS), SageOpen. She has published a significant number of research papers.

Almas Ashraf, Department of Humanities, NED University of Engineering and Technology Karachi

Almas Ashraf is an Assistant Professor at the Humanities Department, NEDUET, Karachi. She has done her MS on the language assessment practices in English for academic purposes courses at undergraduate level. She has attended a number of courses, diplomas, and summer schools at various universities including University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka. She has more than twelve years of teaching experience. She has remained a program officer for English Works and language teacher for English Access programs, both programs are sponsored by US Consulate and RELO Pakistan. She has multiple publications in reputed journals and she happens to be a well-cited researcher. She has actively participated in various research conferences. She has an extensive experience of managing research conferences, supervising research projects and theses, conducting research seminars and workshops, among other achievements.

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